USIA - Transcript: Turkish FM Tansu Ciller At UNGA (96-09-24)

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From: The United States Information Agency (USIA) Gopher at <gopher://gopher.usia.gov>

TRANSCRIPT: TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER TANSU CILLER AT UNGA

(Ciller regarding Turkey's proposed security zone) (600)

The security zone is called for because the Kurdish terrorist group known as the PKK has stationed itself in northern Iraq near Turkey, Ciller told reporters September 23 prior to her meeting with Secretary of State Warren Christopher at the U.N. General Assembly. Turkey also fears the influx of refugees from Iraq, she said.

She said Turkey -- contrary to press reports -- "cannot" ask Iraq's Saddam Hussein for help on these matters "because we have always respected the U.N. resolutions."

Following is the transcript from the State Department:

(begin transcript)

FOREIGN MINISTER CILLER: You are talking about the misunderstanding in the press is that it?

Q: Yes.

CILLER: First of all, I would like to say, I want to seize this opportunity and thank you very much.

We have been talking with a number of people from the United States as well. Our position has been very clear from the beginning. I was the first person and we were probably the first country to declare that Saddam's actual influx into the Irbil area was something that should not have happened and that he should withdraw immediately. That's what I said, to start with.

Therefore, we are worried about the security of our borders. We want to stop the influx of refugees through our borders. But we cannot ask Saddam to do that for us because we have always respected the U.N. resolutions. It would be contradictory to myself if I said such a statement that, at one point, that he should not enter Irbil and initiate another mode to ask him to move in the "no-fly" zone. That's obviously a misunderstanding

We had an interview with the BBC about half an hour prior to my interview with the New York Times. Fortunately, we don't change national policies in that short a time. Our President has been very clear throughout. We have stood by our ally, the United States, and we hope to expand that.

It is true that my country, geographically, is in a strategic point, as had been seen again. We have lived up to all that was asked from us by the United States.

As you know, we have helped the U.S. citizens to be transmitted from Iraq through Turkey, to rescue them; then, we have also helped our U.S. ally to get the U.S. Government officials from Iraq to be transmitted through Turkey again.

We were asked to help the 2,500 Kurdish origin-people living in that part of the world -- in Iraq -- and, for humanitarian reasons, we also responded immediately for that request as well.

So on all the issues that we were asked from our ally, the United States, we immediately responded. I think that the report of actions stands for itself.

Q: So you're not ready to cancel that Security zone?

CILLER: We are not ready to cancel the Security zone because we fear the influx of refugees and the PKK has been right next door and has stationed themselves right next to our borders. It is a zone that needs to be temporarily a danger zone.

(end transcript)

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